Buckle holder for assembling straps



May 16, 1950 W. R. SPEARRIN BUCKLE HOLDER FOR ASSEMBLING STRAPS Filed July 26, 1947 IN V ENTOR.

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Patented May 16, 1950 BUCKLE HOLDER FOR ASSEMBLING STRAPS William R; Spearrin, Naugatuck, Conn., assignor to Scovill Manufacturing Company, Waterbury, Conn.,-a corporation of Connecticut Application July 26, 1947, Serial No. 763,845

8 Claims.

This invention relates to a device for holding a slide loop buckle during the time that the operator is looping or threading a garment strap through the slots or openings provided in such buckle.

Heretofore, the practice in assembling garment straps to a slide 100p buckle has been for the operator to manually hold the buckle with one hand while threading or looping the garment strap through the various openings of the buckle with the other hand, and the nature of the threading of the strap is such that the hand holding the buckle also had to be employed in facilitating the strap threading operation.

It is one of the objects of this invention to make a simple device or holder into which a buckle can be easily received and held during the time that the strap is being threaded through the buckle openings and permitting the operator to make use of both hands in this threading operation.

The holder is designed to be set upon a work table and anchored in place for proper use and is found to eliminate the difliculties and delays involved in the prior hand assembly methods, to

the advantage of the operator in increasing the operator's production and thus substantially reduce the cost of manufacture of the garments employing slide loop adjustable buckles.

The invention will be better understood from the detailed description which follows when considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawing showing a preferred embodiment of my invention, and wherein:

Fig. l is a perspective view of the device showing one embodiment of the invention as it appears attached to a table support, and showing a buckle ready to be received therein.

Fig. 2 is a plan view of the buckle holder, per se.

Fig. 3 is a vertical section through the same, taken along the line 3-3 of Fig. 2.

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary view of the upright portion of the buckle holder with portions broken away and showing a buckle in assembled position.

-Fig. 4A is an end view of the upper portion of 3 one of the legs of the buckle supporting member on; an enlarged scale to show in more detail the entrance end of the buckle receiving groove.

Fig. 5 is an end view of a buckle partly in section showing the preliminary looping operation several views, the numeral l0 designates generally a buckle holding device which is here shown in the form of an L-shaped bracket which is adapted to be supported on a table top H. The short leg I2 of the L-shaped bracket may be considered the pedestal and is provided with three chamfered holes I3. The bracket Ill may be permanently secured to any conventional table top II as by screws l4 having their heads received into the chamfered holes l3.

The longer leg I5 constitutes the upright or buckle supporting member. When the bracket Ill is attached to the table top H, said member [5 is disposed in an upstanding vertical position relative to said table top. This upright member I5 is provided with a relatively long slot l6 preferably positioned centrally thereof and opening through the upper end I! thereof.

The slot It provides for opposed edges l8 into which are cut or milled longitudinal grooves l9 substantially central of the leg thickness and extending only part way down the length of said slot edges. The lower ends of the grooves [9 are designed to gradually merge into the edges l8 by arcuate surfaces 20 (see Fig. 4) which surfaces 20 constitute stops for the buckle when the latter is assembled into position as will appear later. Each groove l9 comprises a base surface 2| and side walls 22 as clearly shown in Figs. 4 and 4A. The upper ends of the grooves [9 have their base surfaces 2! chamfered outwardly as at 23 and the side walls 22 likewise are chamfered outwardly as at 24 so as to merge said base surface 21 and side walls 22 into the upper end I! of the holding member l5, and in this fashion widening the entrance ends to said grooves l9 to facilitate the entrance of the buckle 25 into said holding member.

The buckle 25, inasmuch as it belongs to th slide loop class, is provided with a plurality of openings for threading a garment strap 3| therethrough. Typical of this general type of buckle there is illustrated one having a relatively wide opening 26 disposed adjacent the lower edge of the buckle, and a pair of adjacent openings 2'! and 28 of less width are disposed there above as viewed in Figs. 1 and 4. The buckle 25 is formed with a projecting portion 29 to which may be attached a snap fastened element 30 for detachable engagement with a complemental element attached to a part of a garment to which the suspender strap 3| may be attached.

In setting up the buckle 25 for the assembly 01' a strap by a threading and looping operation, the buckle by hand is first aligned with the upper :of said slot.

3 chamfered ends of the grooves l9 and then dropped in place to slide by gravity down to the stops 2!], whereupon the operation can then proceed to assemble the strap 3|.

In Figs. 5 and 6 is shown the manner as to how the strap 3| may be assembled into a buckle to constitute one form of slide loop. Specifically the leading end 32, of the strap 3| is first threaded through the larger lower opening 26 in the direction of arrow I. In the next operation the leading end of the strap is folded back and threaded through the uppermost opening 2,! in the direction as indicated by arrow 2, and finally through the middle opening 28 in the direction of arrow 3.

When the strap is assembled in the manner substantially as shown in Fig. 5, the operator will then apply a reverse pull on the body of the strap 3| in the direction of arrow 4 as shown in Fig. 6, whereupon the leading end 32 of the strap 3i will be automatically pulled baokwardly through thelarger opening 2t and bind the strap to the buckle 25 as shown in Fig. 6.

While I have herein described and upon the drawing shown an illustrative embodiment of the invention, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited thereto but may comprehend other constructions, and arrangements without departing from the spirit of the invention and details of parts.

I claim:

1.' A device of the class described embodying an upstanding member having means for attachment to a table support, said member having a vertimeans provided in said opposed edges for removably receiving a buckle in a vertical supported po sition, said groove means extending but part Way down the opposed edges whereby said buckle will be held in anelevated position above the base 2 A supporting device for a buckle comprising central slot opening through its upper end and presenting opposed edges, a groove formed in each edge of said slot and extending but part way down of a strap to said buckle.

3. A supporting device for a buckle comprising an upstanding member having means for attachment to a table support, said member having a central slot opening through its upper end and presenting opposed side edges and a bottom edge, agroove formed in each side edge and opening through the upper end of said member, said 'anupstanding member having means for attachment to a table support, said member having a grooves adapted to receive the opposed edges of a buckle and retain the same in a vertical position, and means in said grooves to hold said buckle in an elevated position above the bottom edge of said slot to facilitate the assembly of a strap to said buckle. the upper end of each of said grooves that open through the upper end of said member being chamfered as an aid in guiding the buckle into said grooves.

4. A supporting device for holding a buckle while threading a strap through openings provided therein, said device comprising a bracket adaptable to be attached to a support and having an upstanding vertical member, said member having a Substantially central slot opening through its upper end and extending part way down into said member, said slot opening presenting opposed edges and a bottom edge, said opposed edges each provided with a longitudinal groove also opening through the upper end of said member and adapted to removably receive said buckle therein.

5. A supporting device as defined b claim 4 wherein the buckle holding groove extend only part Way down the length of said slot opposed edges to provide for a stop to hold said buckle in an elevated position relative to said slot bottom edge.

6. A supporting device for holding a buckle while threading a strap through openings provided therein, said device comprising an L shaped bracket one leg of which serves as a pedestal and having means for rigid attachment to a supporting table, the other leg extending vertically upwardly therefrom and constituting the holding member, said member having a relatively long axial slot opening through the upper end thereof and presenting opposed side edges and a base edge, said edges each provided with a longitudinal groove also opening through the upper end of said member and adapted to slidably receive said buckle therein, said grooves extending part way down the opposed edges to provide for a stop for said buckle in holding the latter in an elevated position relative to the base of said slot.

7. A supporting device as defined by claim 6 wherein the base of said buckle-receiving grooves adjacent their upper ends are beveled outwardly.

8. A supporting device as defined by claim 6 wherein the base and sidewalls of said bucklereceivinggrooves adjacent their upper ends are beveled outwardly.

WILLIAM R. SPEARRIN.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED spares PATENTS Number Name Date 986,158 Florsheim Mar. 7, 1911 1,600,794 Brown Sept. 21, 1926 1,632,036 Muller June 14, 1927 

